Earlier this year, The Greater Richmond Partnership, Inc. was invited to participate in a marketing mission to Israel in cooperation with the Brussels office of the Virginia Economic Development Partnership.
Gene Winter experiences Israeli hospitality first hand in Jerusalem.
The bustling, modern, port city of Haifa, also home to Intel’s first facility in Israel.
I joined Matt Duys, Director of Virginia's European operations, and Ralph Robbins, the Executive Director of the Virginia Israel Advisory Board, on an ambitious trip that took us from the Lebanese border to the Gaza strip and on to Jerusalem.
Duys and I arrived in Tel Aviv at 1:15 a.m. on a Saturday morning. After catching a few hours of sleep and then a day of adjustment, work began on Sunday morning at 7:30. The Israeli work week is Sunday through Thursday, so when in Rome, do as the Israelis do.
The first two appointments were with major Israeli defense contractors. Security was high at both installations with Uzis and barb wire in abundance. Still, the Israeli executives were surprisingly modest. One unit apologized for being small by U.S. standards. When asked how large their company was, they said their division brought in $1.2 billion of the entire companies' $3.2 billion revenue. We assured them that we did not consider them a "small company."
On Tuesday the team pushed off to Modin, a new community halfway between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem that reminds one of Southern California or Silicon Valley. We were surprised to learn from a presentation by a CEO that this medical diagnostic device firm included two VCU-MCV doctors on its Special Advisory Board. Also, another tenant in the park was Cupron, an Israeli company located at the Virginia Biotechnology Park and a participant in the Virginia Israel Bio-Commercialization Program.
Later the second day it was back to Tel Aviv to meet with an Israeli-American law firm to discuss cooperation on future recruitment initiatives. This firm has a major office in Washington, D.C. and it's now supporting our recruiting efforts.
Day three we headed north to a kibbutz located on the border of Lebanon. As we looked out the conference windows, we could see the fortifications and military defense communications that are on continual alert. One of the executives that we were originally expecting to meet could not join the meeting because they were out of the country. When we asked where, they smiled and said that their associate was in Richmond, Virginia that day meeting with a Fortune 500 company. A few days after our return to Richmond, we met with the local businessman and compared notes and reported on our observations.
Later that day another visit focused on a company that was planning to visit Virginia and Richmond in May. The company's consultant had already visited Virginia and was now planning to return with the CEO. Sometimes timing is everything.
Day three concluded with a dinner meeting in Tel Aviv with an aerospace supplier that was pursuing a contract with the new Rolls- Royce manufacturing complex in Prince George County. This individual had visited Central Virginia on several occasions and is prepared to invest in the area if a contract materializes.
Day four followed the same pattern of traveling the length and breadth of Israel. At every meeting, our secret weapons were the code words-hummus and Ofra Strauss. Everyone in Israel knows the Chairwoman of The Strauss Group, Ofra Strauss, widely recognized as one of the top ten most influential and successful business women in the world.
The Israelis were amazed and surprised to learn of the joint venture in Chesterfield County between PepsiCo/Frito Lay to build the Sabra Foods hummus manufacturing facility. This $64 million investment established instant credibility for the Greater Richmond story.
Gene Winter has served as Senior Vice President for the
Greater Richmond Partnership, Inc. since 1994.
The last meeting on Day Four was with a company that had been identified earlier in the year by the Greater Richmond Partnership team when we were at the Photonics West trade show in San Francisco. The visit allowed a more in-depth discussion with their senior management team about the business opportunities and support we could offer.
Day Five began with a trip south to Ashqelon, about twelve miles from the Gaza Strip. This company was founded before the establishment of Israel. It is still a functioning kibbutz that sells its products internationally, including a component for the OSHKOSH All Terrain Vehicle. Their U.S. plans focus on opportunities related to high speed rail.
After a few more meetings, and since the return flight to Europe was scheduled for 12:30 a.m. from Tel Aviv, Duys and I were taken on a very quick visit to the old City of Jerusalem. It was there at 7:45 p.m. as we were in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, Duys received a call on his mobile phone that our flight to Brussels had been canceled-because of the volcanic ash from Iceland.
After scrambling and making other arrangements, we ended up on a flight to Cologne, Germany at 2:30 a.m. At 4:00 a.m. as we passed over Turkey, the pilot announced that the Cologne airport was closed and we would not be allowed to land. (To be continued...)
